Flare for use on aircraft



H. E. S. HOLT.

FLARE FOR USE ON AIRCRAFT. APPLICATION FILED APR- 23. 19H. 1,360,527, Patented Nov. '30, 1920.

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FLARE FOR USE ON AIRCRAFT. APPLICATION FILED APR-23. 1917.

1,360,527, Patented Nov. 30, 1920.

Fly4 6: z/ Z I $5f:-; A j J 6 1/ INVENTUR. fiZTiHULT H. E. S. HOLT. FLARE FOR USE ON AIRCRAFT. APPLICATION FILED APR. 23. 1917.

Patented Nov. 30, 1920.

3 $HEET$$HEET 3- [IS/YEN TJR A T z'omwszys UNlTED s rarss HAROLD EDWARD sHEnwINHoLr, or raanizonouon, ENGLAND.

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FLARE ron USE on AIRCRAFT.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented NOV. 30, 1920.

7 Application filed April 23, 1917. Serial No. 163,958;

' T 0 all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I,- HARoLD EDWARD SHER- wrN HOLT, a subject "of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, residin at lhe Grange, Farnborough, Hampshire, l fngland, have invented certain new and useful Improve mentsin Flares for Use on Aircraft, of which the following is a specification.

This invention for improvements in flares or illuminatingbodies for use on aircraft relates to flares or illuminatingbodies employed to facilitate the landing of aeroplanes at night and comprising a cylindrical" or similar caslng contalnrng combustible material, suspended from a convenient part ofthe aeroplane and provided with igniting means underthe control ofthe airman.

- One object of this invention is to provide a flare of'this type which after being first T:

ignitedand burning for a time shall be automatically extinguished, and still be capable V of being reignited and burning for a further 1 period so that, ifthe landing place first ex- H terial being either contained inidiiferentalnined with the aid of the flare is found to beunsuitable, there willistill be an unconsumed portion or "portions available for further use. i v r 1 Another object of this invention is to conserve the flare material, especially in'long burning flares, where the material, owing to the heat of combustion at the loweror burning end,-tends to disintegrate and fall away.

The first object of: the invention is attained by isolating two or more portions of the flarematerial' from eachother so that one portion can burn away without igniting another the separate portions of flare macompartments of the same casing or in separate casings, and providlng separate 1gn1ting means for the different flare portions .preferably controlled from the same switch.

' Ina practical form'of the inventionas applied. to a'twicesacting'flare or 'a flare ;for aflordingtwo separate periods of illumination, two portions of flare material arecontained inthe same casing one above another but; are separated by spaced disks of wood:

and cardboard having an air. space between them or by a solid block of wood or other non-conductor of heat. T The lowerfportion' .burns away flrstwithout igniting the upper portion, which is sufliciently insulated from the heat generated by the lower portion by means-of the said disks and air space, or other non-conductor.

A battery or other source of electric current with controlling switch is connected with separate igniters forthe two portions of the flare, the circuit ofthe upper'portion which is ignited last being controlled by the same switch as the lower portion, but kept open during the first closing of said switch by an auxiliary switch or spring contact arranged to close automatically after the lower portion of the flare has been ignitedp For this. purpose the spring contact, which is mounted on a wooden disk at the top of the flare, is'conveniently held open by a wire, so fixed to the lower portion of the flare, that it is released when the flare begins to burn, and allows the contact to close. 'A tube for the passage of air may be arranged centrally in the flare material, such tube extending from end to end of the flare casing and burning away with the casing. v .Where perforated disks of paper or the :like are employed in flares for preventing Fi' 3 is a transverse section taken at Figs. 4 and 5 are anelevation and plan respectively of the upper part of the flare.

Fig. 6 is a sectionalelevation taken at ri ht angles to. Fig. 4. ig. 7 is a sectional plan, and

Fig.:8'is a diagram of the electrical ignition circuitsr n 1 Figs. 9 and 10 are elevation and developed "plan respectively showing a modified. ar-. rang'ement including separate flares on the :same bracket, and

Fig. 11 is a diagram of the electrical ignition circuits of same.

As shown in Fig. 1 the flarecaslng a is dividedinto upper and lower compartments a a byspaced disks of woodb and cardboard 0 having an. air space dibetween them. Each compartment a a is filled with a separate portion of flare material (not I ios m of ametal tongue h is arranged in the plug 5 the fiarevmaterial in the lower. compartment gaandlpressed towarda .contact pin 71b a bent w'virespringv 71/, Figs. 6 and 7. he switch tongue h is'connected into the igniting circuit-of the upper flare compartment anand is held away fromaits contact pin 71, v to=keep1thecircuit open until. after the flare materialin the lower compartment a hhas been ignited, by. a wire j which runs through arprotecting, sheathing k on the flare ebody Qand'is attached as shown to a nail-or similar I fastener Z driven intothe lower part 'ofthe :casing .a. It .willbe seen that as the. lower part. of the casing is consumed together with fa the. wire will be released automatically permitting the switch tongue 72. to move into fthe! closed position.

As shown in therdiagram natic view; Fig. 8,-the.ig1 iiter d. uncluded: in a 1 conductor (which comprisesconducting wires 90 and w the/, latter :being directly connected to'ithe battery'ore niergizing. means 41,: andv a switch 'm-beingprovided to close :the circuitat will I of an a viator (or operator. second con- .-du ctor includes the.,.second ,igniter da and also includes conducting wires 7 and y. This; second conductor isadapted-to be put in.- circuit with the generator 1 or energizing meansn gthrough theimedium of the switch h,-the binding point ibeing connected with the first idescribed conductor and constituting a contact against which the switch he constantly. tendsi-,-toi imove;. but.- the.-,wire 7', :beingianchored by the;- pinb, is normally held open, and therefore, the second .de-.

.i-scribed v lol'lductor.--is normally ineffective or inoperable :to immediately: energize :the ignitive until the portion,of flare-materiaLfirst ignited has-.yeleased;:the-ranchori Z. where- .zuponathe switch .m is. automatically closed i'down':the=outside:of the flare bodya'but withi switch.

The c1rcu1t wires'w wn'and/ywg/ may be and'immediately efi'ects ignition, by means xi of theiig niter. .di tin the event that :the' switch vmsxrerfmins :aclosed nor upon. closing: this iaxrangednin any, convenientimanner. on the flare body. As shown-both: theiwires ai an forsexamplemleading to ,the igniter (it pass in the'outer covering thereof one-.being continued in that mannersto the bottom end fitrfoff t helflari-body whileiithe-other is led into .teis Patent is terv d,; andl' Lit-remains inoperable; or Iinefl'ecand through ithe tube 'f. At the .upper end one wire :0 is led through an opening 0 t0 the center of the plugg and away to the switch on while the 0therw is also led to thecenter of the plug 9 through the same opening 0 and thence to the outside again through another hole which terminates near the contact pin 71 of the automatic switch. At.this poinhthe Wire is bared and connected to the contact pin 11 being then doubled back upon. itself. and led. through the samehole to the center again; and away .to the tcrminaloftheabattery n. Circuit wires 4 y passfrom .theigniter d .up *the tube f; the wire 9 beingjomed to orled toe the same terminal as wire 00' while the wire .y/ is connected to the holding-nail or-screw of the switch tongue h.

In-a'modifled form ,0f-..c'onstruotion instead ,of employing. two'iflare. portions .in-t85 closedwin a casing-common to both, separate ufiaresrmay be arranged on ithe same bracket or support and-their ignitioncontrolled by a the same switch in a manner similar to that already described. Such, an-anrangement 15a illustratedln Eigs;-9 toll .in which separate flares a aareufitted with'lterminal plugs inserted in terminal couplingsockets -p 1) provided on an. {insulating angular: bracket 9 carried .ona cylindrical, stock. 4'; adapted; to be clamped (in .a suitable suspending An automatic switch comprising bracket.

a spring tongue h and contact piece 11' is in: this case mounted on :the bracket gi-the spring tongue 7:." :beingdleld in the open po-;

sition by a wire j. :attached to the flare a which is to be ignited first. .i'lerming the circuits w w and-guy: as beforeziit will be seen thatcn firstclosing the switch m the circuit 00 m whichiignitestheflarea is completed, after which .the ;automatic switch h i is closed so that'ona again closing switch m the circuit oflthe igniter in the other flare a willvbe' completed.

lVhat I claim and 1 desire to secure :by Let- 1. A flare or illuminating device comprising portions of combustible material .z-isolated from one another,- igniting'means for each portion, means 1 @normally I efi'ecti've to actuate one Ofwthe igniting means-abut .nor-

mally ineffective 'toiactuatewthe remaining igniting .means,iand imeans controlled upon combustion of the-.portion ifi-rst' ignited to :render efle'ctiyehtheiactuating means of a :previously ineffective ignitingmeans. 2. Aflare-or illuminating device compriswing a plurality of combustible :elements, igniting means for eachelementincluding electric circuits with battery and. switch, a circuit breaking means included in thetcircuitof theigniting means of oneof the elements and ada ted to normally render same ineffective, an imeans dependentiupon the combustion ofa combustibleelement with one of these igniting means but normally ineffective to immediately actuate the second igniting means, and means controlled upon combustion of the portion first ignited to render effective the actuating means for effecting ignition by the second igniting means.

4:. A flare comprising two combustible portions, an electric conductor, including an igniter in position to ignite only one of said portions when electrically energized, a second electric conductor including a second igniterin position to ignite the second.one of said portions when electrically energized, a normally open switch adapted to connect the first and second said conductors, means to electrically energize the first said 001;-

ductor, and means adapted to become effective upon combustion of the portion first ignited to close said switch and thereby subject the second igniter to the control of the energizing means.

5. A fiare or illuminating device compris ing a plurality of combustible elements; an electric circuit including a switch, a shunt and an igniter extraneous of the shunt and in position to ignite one of said combustible elements, said shunt including an igniter and an automatic circuit closer; and means combining with one of said combustible elements for normally holding said circuit closer open and allowing it to close after the igniter extraneous of said shunt has ignited the correlated combustible element, whereby the circuit through said shunt can cause the igniter in the shunt to ignite another of said combustible elements.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature.

HAROLD EDWIN SHERWIN HOLT 

